Time is running out for local high school students in the tri-county area to apply for the Harold S. Schwartz Music Scholarship.
Deadline is March 12 to submit the application, said Gerri Piscitelli, head of The Opera Club of The Villages. Over $236,000 in scholarships has been awarded since 1997. First prize is $12,000.
Students may download applications at: operaclubofthevillages.com
Applications should be submitted to: Maggie Dick, Scholarship Committee Chair, 1089 Forest Drive, The Villages, FL 32162.
Applicants must be graduating seniors with a minimum grade point average of 3.0. In addition to the application, students must submit two letters of recommendation and official school transcripts.
Also, students from Marion, Sumter or Lake Counties must be planning to major in music education or performance in college. They must be available to audition on April 9 and, if selected will perform at an Opera Club meeting on April 28.
Among the previous winners is Devin Eatmon, who graduated from The Villages High School in 2013. He impressed Maestro Bill Doherty and the late Oscar Feliu and earned a Schwartz scholarship.
Eatmon is now studying music in college and has performed with Central Florida Lyric Opera. “He is a natural and a special talent,” Doherty said. Those are the kinds of students, the Schwartz scholarship hopes to help.
